SUNDERLAND — In recognition of the challenges restaurant owners have faced during the COVID-19 pandemic, one local restaurant owner is hoping to make Thanksgiving Day a little easier for others in her position by offering free takeout meals to them and their families.
“It was just an idea my husband and I had,” said Bub’s Bar-B-Que owner Andrea Moroney. “It’s been a really hard year for restaurant owners as far as operations go, having to change the way you do business. Not only are sales cut back, but most of the work has changed. There’s been so much adapting, I was like, ‘We should do something for restaurant owners.’”
According to a post on the barbecue restaurant’s Facebook page, Thanksgiving dinners will include helpings of turkey, macaroni and cheese, cornbread dressing, sweet potato casserole, collard greens and pecan pie. The restaurant can accommodate families of up to 10 people.
Moroney said interested restaurant owners should call her at 413-336-4484 by Nov. 21.
“I was planning on people picking up their food on the day before Thanksgiving,” she explained. “And on Thanksgiving Day, they could just put the food in the oven … and it would make a much easier day for them.”
Bub’s Bar-B-Que, which will close for the winter on Dec. 1, has had a difficult year for sales, she said, and has had to alter many aspects of operation, from removing its buffet-style service to reducing operating hours to Fridays and Saturdays. Still, Moroney said other restaurant owners haven’t been as fortunate as she has, particularly because the restaurant on Amherst Road (Route 116) was already set up for takeout.
“I felt like we could do something to make people’s day a little bit easier, so they could enjoy their family,” she said. “It’s a stressful year.”
According to Moroney, the restaurant has also partnered with Baystate Health to provide free meals for up to 25 frontline workers and their families.
Moroney said there’s a mutual understanding between restaurant owners regarding the difficulties this year has presented.
“We’re all in it together,” she said.